ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a brief overview of the role of high culture in the reproduction of the class structure from generation to generation. Social class stability depends on, first, general acceptance of the propriety of the class hierarchy and, second, on the effective placement and socialization of youth into the system. In addition to maintaining solidarity, adherence to a shared status culture is used as a basis for the allocation of scarce social goods. To the extent that high-status students persist longer in school, class differentials in involvement with high culture are supported by educational process. It has been argued that involvement in the arts is useful as a ritual for ratifying élite solidarity and for screening prospective members of élite status groups for acceptability and trustworthiness. Analyses of boards of trustees of major arts organizations bear witness to the extent to which such institutions are controlled by members of the upper class, often local, closely linked, and socially exclusive.
